4/1 Update: Calipari and Kentucky have agreed to the new deal.
Kentucky has reportedly offered John Calipari a lengthy contract after UCLA expressed significant interest in hiring him for its vacant head coaching job.
There has been plenty of speculation about the UCLA opening in recent weeks, and Calipari’s name continued to pop up as a possible target for the Bruins.
Well, it appears that UCLA tried its best to lure Calipari away from Lexington, and that included going as far as offering him a deal.
However, Calipari apparently had no interest in the job and has now received what is essentially a lifetime contract from Kentucky, according to The Athletic’s Seth Davis:
The University of Kentucky has offered John Calipari what is essentially a lifetime contract extension in response to a lucrative offer the coach has received from UCLA, The Athletic has learned.
UCLA offered Calipari a contract worth approximately $48 million over six years, according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation. The contacts between Calipari and UCLA have been more extensive than previously reported, but Calipari told UCLA last week he is not interested in leaving Kentucky.
Davis also mentioned that the reason Kentucky allowed UCLA permission to speak with Calipari is due to a belief that he would not seriously consider leaving the school, which obviously led to the response of offering him a huge deal.
The Wildcats were ousted from the NCAA Tournament on Sunday as Auburn grabbed a 77-71 victory in Kansas City.
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